Tyre standards in India: the ISI mark, AIS-142 and star labels

A new car tyre sold in India has to clear three layers of rules, and a fourth label is optional. It must be certified to the Indian Standard and carry the ISI mark, a requirement since 2011. If its design is fitted to new cars as original equipment, it must also meet limits for wet grip, rolling resistance and rolling noise that India adopted from the international rules in 2022. And it must carry its date of manufacture and maximum load. On top of that, makers can take part in the Bureau of Energy Efficiency’s star label, which rates tyres on rolling resistance.

The Indian Standard and the ISI mark

Rule 95 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules requires the tyres on motor vehicles made or imported from 1 April 2006 to comply with the applicable Indian Standard. There are three: IS 15627 for two- and three-wheeler tyres, IS 15633 for passenger car tyres and IS 15636 for commercial vehicle tyres, as India described them when it notified the standards to the World Trade Organization in 2006. The 2022 amendment moved the commercial vehicle standard to its 2012 edition.

Separately, a Bureau of Indian Standards quality control order in force since 13 May 2011 requires pneumatic tyres to carry the ISI mark on the sidewall, according to the tyre makers’ association ATMA, with exemptions for some tyres notified by the government. The mark shows that the tyre has been certified against the standard.

Wet grip, rolling resistance and noise since 2022

On 28 June 2022 the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways notified G.S.R. 479(E), the Central Motor Vehicles (Tenth Amendment) Rules, 2022, and announced it on 1 July. It added a new sub-rule to rule 95 requiring tyre designs in classes C1 (passenger cars), C2 (light trucks) and C3 (trucks and buses) to meet the wet grip limits and the Stage 2 limits for rolling resistance and rolling sound set out in the automotive industry standard AIS-142:2019. The ministry said this aligned India with the UNECE regulations.

The timetable in the notification was:

Tyre designs	Rolling resistance and wet grip	Rolling sound
New designs	1 October 2022	1 October 2022
Existing designs	1 April 2023	1 June 2023

The notification defines both groups by reference to tyres approved under IS 15633 or IS 15636 that are fitted as original equipment on new motor vehicles. In the ministry’s words, rolling resistance affects fuel efficiency, wet grip affects braking on wet roads and so safety, and rolling sound is the noise made where a moving tyre meets the road.

The date code and maximum load

Rule 95 also requires every tyre maker to emboss on each tyre, besides its trade mark and size, the week and year (or month and year) of manufacture and its maximum load capacity. Our guide to tyre expiry dates explains how to read the date.

The BEE star label

The Bureau of Energy Efficiency’s labelling programme covers C1, C2 and C3 tyres under its Schedule 30, which sets out the requirements for taking part, how rolling resistance and wet grip are tested under AIS-142, and star bands based on the rolling resistance coefficient. More stars mean lower rolling resistance, and so lower fuel use or longer electric range. Makers began publicising ratings in 2022: Apollo said on 1 August that year that its Amperion EV tyre was the first Indian tyre to earn 5 stars in the passenger car category.

What the rules tell a buyer, and what they do not

These rules tell you a tyre is legal, meets a minimum standard and how old it is. They do not rank tyres: two certified tyres in the same size can still differ a good deal in wet braking, noise and tread life. When you buy, check the ISI mark and the date code, look for a star label if fuel economy matters, and match the size, load index and speed rating your car needs. Our guides to reading a tyre size and choosing the best tyres for your car cover the rest.